Raised by Lions

Chapter 39: Adler - Day 2

The actors had agreed to practice during Club time so Legosi could at least get one full run through practice before the show that night. The time would have otherwise been given as off time so they weren't too tired during the show, but this was an exception.

Bill seemed a little upset that a stage hand got to take over the lead role, but he kept it to himself mostly, instead being happy that for his scene, he got to swordfight with another carnivore. Bill seemed convinced he didn't need to hold back in that case.

That mindset suited Legosi just fine. His forte might have been knives, but a sword was just a long knife with a longer range.

Bill seemed to be venting some frustrations, and subsequently making Sanu nervous, but Legosi wasn't even paying attention to his words, more watching his body language.

Bill let his guard down for a moment and Legosi used that to push him back several feet. A few quick swings and Legosi had Bill knocked off his feet and laying on the ground, the wooden sword pointed at the tiger's throat to keep him in place.

Bill swallowed, looking a bit nervous. "Okay dude, calm down," Bill said, trying hard, and failing, to keep his voice level. Legosi moved the sword away and held his hand out to help Bill back to his feet. "I'm perfectly calm, Bill. Just got into the scene a bit too much," Legosi said, pulling the tiger to his feet. Bill let out a nervous chuckle as he pulled his hand back.

Sanu had them move onto the next scene very quickly after that.

Something Legosi picked up on quickly, was that Ellen was a bit unnerved about him having to be in contact with her for several scenes, even if it was just holding hands. He'd made extra sure to not scratch her or dig his claws into her skin. He'd be wearing gloves during the performance anyway.

She seemed especially skeptical during the last scene, where she had to 'die' in his arms. When Sanu got tired of her jerking back from Legosi's hands, the pelican called for a 5 minute break.

Legosi stretched his back out, the hunched over position causing a cramp in his lower back. Ellen was fiddling with her hands and Juno seemed to be glaring the zebra down.

Legosi took the chance to approach Ellen, keeping his hands behind his back and his shoulders hunched to come off a little less frightening. She still seemed skeptical, but a little less so.

"You know, I'm not going to hurt you or anything like that. You can trust me," Legosi said in a gentle voice. Ellen seemed to consider it, fiddling with her hands still. "My instincts just kick in and I get kinda scared," Ellen admitted.

Legosi could understand that, he knew herbivores had their instincts too and it was usually to run away from danger, which he seems to be in this situation. Not that she was wrong, but it was working on the others nerves, even if Legosi didn't react to it.

"If it can't be helped, then if anyone asks, say it's just your character's fear of dying kicking in as they pass away," Legosi offered as a solution. Sanu seemed taken back, but it could be an easy excuse if they couldn't get it to stop before the show.

"Okay, take it again from the last scene!" Sanu called to get everyone back to their places. Legosi caught the jealous look Juno was throwing towards them when they did the scene again. It took a couple more goes, but Ellen wasn't flinching as much anymore.

About an hour before the performance, Sanu sent everyone to go change into their costumes and get their makeup done. Dom went with Legosi to make sure they let out the costume enough for the wolf to fit into it without it looking off.

°°°°°

About 15 minutes before they went on, Legosi perked up at hearing the uneven gait of crutches and one quiet footstep. He watched Louis approach in the mirror and found his tail wagging slightly.